Falling pics 11/25/09

[Skeans]

I'll see if I can get the guy I'm doing some cutting for to snap a few this evening, the fun of moon lighting


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[Metals406]

That heartwood is crazy looking!

Thanks for the pics Mike!

 

[treeslayer2003]

these trees are old, thats why the hearts so big........next step for them would be hollow, there is a few in this tract.

 

[coltont]

Once you've been on a high cotton job for 8 or 9 months the low cotton jobs really suck. But as you guys know if you invest money on a tract of big timber it's gotta get cut soon. Sometimes cutting timber is like scratching a lottery ticket.

 

[coltont]

Plus I'm running the stupid clumsy hard turning tree skinning lazy man grapple skidder since mines in the shop. Personally I'd much rather drag cable than worry about what hydraulic line is going to leak today.

 

[treeslayer2003]

all of um lol.

 

[coltont]

My 93 540E is 10 times the machine our 98 548GII is. Buy I'm a bias prick too....

 

[Skeans]

You guys and your cable machines, are there many swinging grapple machines out there?


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[treeslayer2003]

i have several cable skidders and a grapple. no swingers around here but i can see how it would work well.

 

[Skeans]

They do with bunching grapples on them, only bad part is the load rating isn't as high and no winch I've ever seen rigged on one from the factory but no reason you couldn't do what timber pro did on one of their harvesters and put a block on the side of the boom.


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[northmanlogging]

I don't think I could log half of what I do with a grapple skidder, just too steep. With the cable I can stay on top of a ridge... usually... be fairly safe...

A grapple has to get up close and personal with a log to drag it in.

 

[Skeans]

Sounds like good ground for for a 517 527 you'd be amazed what you can do with one of them, ours is a fixed grapple and you really can push it, bad enough you can stand on the dash or pray real good.


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[coltont]

I'm opposed to the grapple machine because of how much it tears up. A good operator can really help that but you still skin up allot of trees when your pulling wood since you have to get rite to every tree to get a holt of it to get it out.

 

[Gologit]

They're great on clear cuts. Fast.

 

[coltont]

Good for pulling pulp too.

 

[Skeans]

Anytime you're thinning unless you're running a straight row you're going to have damage, I know that's why some of the guys here went to the swinging grapple machine because of the extra control you have well running. Mostly 517's or d4h's for less ground impact.


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[Metals406]

I was gonna buy a 518 w/ a Esco swinger in 2009. $8,500 and lowboy'd here from OR fer nut'n.

Timber sale went too high for me to bid and make any coin.

That would have been a fun unit.

 

[SliverPicker]

I don't think I could log half of what I do with a grapple skidder, just too steep. With the cable I can stay on top of a ridge... usually... be fairly safe...

A grapple has to get up close and personal with a log to drag it in.

How much cable are you windin' on that spool Northy?

 

[northmanlogging]

Started with 100' of 3/4, down to around 90' now, and habitually keep a couple 50-80' lengths in the crummy, with a stack of blocks.

Put much more then 100' on the drum and winding gets kinda tricky, where its at now is nearly perfect... I could use smaller line and gain a few more feet, but I snap the 3/4 on a regular basis as it is, or the 9/16 chokers depends on who's weaker or pinched.

 

[dhskier2]

Anyone ever see/use this anti-chair technique before?